The Relationship Between Redlining and Pollution

By: Raena Grainger

Madison is a city that’s still feeling the effects of redlining today. Even though Madison doesn’t use the old redlining map anymore, discrimination and racism have buried their roots deep in our neighborhoods. Pollution and redlining go hand in hand, putting People of Color at a greater risk for health problems, such as asthma, or cancer.

Redlining is a practice that was mostly used after World War II and was banned in the 1960s. However, over time, redlining shaped the landscape of cities across America, including Madison.

Redlining determined where polluting sources would be placed around cities. Manufacturing and industrial firms would buy land where land was cheapest, which tended to be in redlined neighborhoods. Six decades later we still see these trends and effects in Madison.

In these maps, we see the correspondence between the old redlining map of Madison and the current map of Madison sectioned into areas. It’s very important to note that the new sections of Madison are very close to how the old redlined areas were.

It’s not just income that still is affected by redlining. We can see how pollution and health are still greatly influenced by this old policy. Let’s compare some sections of these maps.

Area C8 is a large section of the current map of Madison that goes through many of the eldest redlined areas.

Area A1 on the old redlining map is in the neighborhood of Shorewood Hills, a richer spot on the opposite side of town that’s actually very close to Spring Harbor.

Let’s look at how certain aspects that are affected by pollutants differ between these two areas.

Notice how Shorewood Hills has the highest life expectancy in Madison. Notice how it has the lowest rate of pulmonary disease (heart problems). Notice how they have the lowest rate of asthma. Finally, notice the distance from the polluters and redlined areas. This can’t be a mistake.

When we look close enough at our neighborhoods, when we look closer at the racist history behind our town, when we notice the “convenient mistakes” that place our polluters, we know it can’t just be a “coincidence”.

We need energy that won’t pollute or discriminate. Wind won’t discriminate as much, as it needs to be outside of the city to work well. Hydro could discriminate. Solar just doesn't work as well in Madison and has the potential to create problems. To solve our problems, we need a society magnifying glass: we need to look at every aspect of energy and housing as we know it.